Swapping Utilities Providers? It Can't Be Done Here

hnisc

Having read and watched a lot of Martin's tips he is forever telling consumers to change their utilities providers (gas, electricity etc.) and shop around for the cheapest deals, but unfortunately we cannot do that in Northern Ireland

Is there an alternative for us to save money in this sector? Can we cap out monthly payments like the mainland UK on gas or electricity?
Thoughts and ideas are welcome! :beer:

IvanOpinion

Not at the minute but the market in NI did open last November .. it is just that nobody has shown any interest in participating (apart form possibly ROI but i think they may even be more expensive than NiE). There are a couple of suppliers considering competition but that could be over a year away.

In the meantime use all the other tips, turn off appliances, use low energy bulbs, minimise use of anything that has a heating element in it etc.

Ivan

hnisc

I'm considering changing from oil heating to gas but I will wait and see what the gas prices rise to! 30% has been mentioned

yorkie98

hnisc wrote: »

I'm considering changing from oil heating to gas but I will wait and see what the gas prices rise to! 30% has been mentioned

If you are in a Firmus Energy area for gas (as opposed to Phoenix) they have said they are extending their price freeze so now might be a good time to switch. The firmus main is coming my way soon and I will be switching asap.
The price of oil is now extortionate and I can only see it going up further.

hnisc

yorkie98 wrote: »

If you are in a Firmus Energy area for gas (as opposed to Phoenix) they have said they are extending their price freeze so now might be a good time to switch. The firmus main is coming my way soon and I will be switching asap.
The price of oil is now extortionate and I can only see it going up further.

Whats the likely outlay for installing gas?

bantamfan

I have had two quotes for installing gas. £2000 and £2400 for much the same thing. Phoenix will install the meter etc free. The quotes were for a good brand of combi boiler that heats only the water you need and was for a bungalow with one bathroom, but sufficient power to heat water for two bathrooms should we extend upstairs. The price covered all work required to convert from oil to gas. Hope this helps.